My First DIY Indoor Grow Room [Grow Log]

I have heard that cardboard boxes are terrible for groeing because the boxes can get wet and moldy which is one of the worst things you can do to your plants. Nutrient burn is very common for beginners. Don't feed anything nutes untill at least a month or if there are signs of nutrient deficiency.

 

Science lesson time, again.

Note, these are my opinion on solutions, but facts on the science.

100 watts per plant is bullshit, based on the concept that "sunlight delivers 120 watts of power at ground level". The problem is, a watt is a joule per second, a joule is the energy needed to push 1 amp through a 1 ohm resistance. Or a unit of energy to do work, create heat, or create light.

So "120 watts" is purely the energy going into heating. The energy spent creating LIGHT was spent 8.3 minutes ago, at the sun.

Proof: The best solar panels out there are 400 watt rated, at 18.1% efficiency, and cover about 1.3 sq meters. Using round numbers (calling 18.1% efficiency 20%), this means light energy through a crystal medium to create electricity, an inherently inefficient process, a "100% efficient", "400 watt" panel would be producing 2,000 watts. Not 150 that you'd get if you used the "120 watt" figure.

What you need to be concerned with it light intensity and fall off, not watts equivalency. The "best way" to do it is determined by your pocketbook and conditions. Industry standard for rating lumenosity (light prodiced at source) is 1 inch from the source for an incandescent (the farthest point from the filament in a clear bulb), estimated at 1600 lumens, as the actual range is 1500-1700 for 100 watts of incandescent light.

Light intensity falls off as a function of a square of the distance from source. Hoods and refelctors help by reflecting SOME light, but you're dealing with distance from source to reflecting material, then inefficiency of reflecting material, then distance from reflecting material where it reflect a specific ray to a specific place...too involved for me to usually get into.

But a "100 watt CFL" (23 "true watt") only delivers 4.9 lumens direct light at 18 inches. Sunlight is an average of 128,000 lux (lumens per square meter direct light). A 400 watt HID about 98 lumens at 18 inches, a 1,000 watt about 237.

You won't match that indoors, no matter what.

You also have to consider bandwidths...plants use NO green light, very little yellow, very little "high band" orange, mostly red, blue, some violet, some IR and some UVA/UVB. Almost no light system that's "normally used" provides the right level of UVA/UVB or IR in and of itself. UVA/UVB are more important to augment, as they're the bands MOST lacking. But a reptile terrarium UV light for tropical/desert lizards works fine for this....if you watch distance from plants to avoid "sunburning" the nearest plants.


As said above, cardboard (or fiberboard, or particleboard) all absorb and hold a lot of moisture. That can be a problem, or might not be. Moisture encourages molds and mildew. A constant fight, here, you'll face no matter what you use, but one you probably needn't worry about if growing in a closet in Palmdale, CA (Mojave desert).
 
Fungal infections, once you get them, are a bitch to get rid of, spread like wildfire, and ruin crops. But treat consistently for them, you CAN control them. I use Greencure products and an every-other-day spraydown of leaves, top and underside.

They make 2 X 2 tents, not much of a loss if you're growing small enough that a 3 X 2 is sufficient. Or you can build one from normal lumber or plywood, and seal the surfaces facing inwards quite easily...but let the sealant dry for a couple weeks before assembling...the fumes can damage the plants...or impact taste, later.

Reflective materials...I think, in discussing light properties, I answered that...use 'em. If you have GREAT heat control, mylar can work, so log as there are spaces for the tent to "breathe", and you're removing heat well, since mylar reflects heat better than light (that's what it was invented to do). Plain old flat white paint on a smooth surface works well enough, too...but again, FULLY dry it...a week at least, or fumes can do damage.


The circuit figures are simple enough.

Anytime you're working with an AC circuit, assume 10% loss of efficiency...so 110 calculates from 100, 220 from 200 volts.

All your equipment will be between 5% and 10% inefficient. A top of the line digital ballast for a 1000 watt HID draws a constant 10.4 amps, 10.8 at startup.

ALWAYS pad for about a 10% inefficiency...safety safety safety...round UP every chance you get.

Use this site to figure it.
 
And use EVERY item on the same circuit in the house, not just on the extension cord, to figure it.

Don't forget, on a 110 rated circuit, 100 "true watts" is an amp, 1 amp is 100 true watts. So if your fan is a "1.4 amp max", it's a 140 watt fan. Plus inefficiencies.

So say you have a 400 watt HID with a ballast rated at 4.4 amps constant (not bad for an analog one), a 1.4 amp "max draw" fan, a timer (50 watts is normal), a 110 watt air pump for whatever reason (for instance a hydro cloning tray), a 100 watt water pump, plus on the same circuit off the breaker panel running 4 "100 watt" FCL bulbs (23 true watts each, 25 when first lighting), you have a total of 940 watts MINIMUM being pulled when all is on...translating to almost a killowatt hour an hour, or a constant 1,000 watts drawn, or 10 amps.

Check the breaker on that circuit...if it's rated at 15 or 20 amps, no worries about shorting at all, unless there's a problem with how the outlet was wired or wear on the wires of the house itself that creates a risk of a short.

But also check the MAIN BREAKER rating. The average house draws 30-40 watts at peak use, in America. If you're running 1,000 watts on top of that, you're risking blowing your main breaker if it's a 50 amp breaker. Not that you can't just flip it back on, BUT.

And if you have garden equipment that uses the same circuit at any time, you WILL blow that breaker every time you start the electric leaf blower.

I cover the basics of your questions?

 

*I* would add light. Others grow fine with 100 watts CFL per plant...it just doesn't give anywhere NEAR outdoor light intensity...the closer you get to normal outdoor conditions where the plants grow best unattended (or with minimal attention) is the goal, for the healthiest possible plants.

Light is energy. Leaves are nature's "solar panels". Light energy plus nutrients plus water equals sugars, sugars are what the plant actually uses to grow. More intense light, more efficient uptake and use of nutrients, more sugar produced, faster plants grow, and healthier they grow.


By "inefficiency"...AC current is a sine wave, not a level line. "110 current" "PEAKS" at 110 volts (actually 120 volts). But since it's constantly changing, the AVERAGE is actually right around 100 volts...10% inefficiency by rating (it loses 10% of its rated value, in practice).

In other terms...equipment terms..."inefficiency" is how much energy it gets that ends up being "wasted", as in "not used for its intended purpose". A ballast is there to rectify current to DC in a stable, flat line pattern. A consistent, unwavering 400 "watts" (watts are joules per second in a relationship. 1 watt is the energy used to do work, create light, or create heat, as one amp is passed through 1 ohm of resistance for 1 second). So at "400 watts" of actual use, what you're doing is running 4 amps through 100 ohms of resistance, intending to create only light. But you create heat, too...no such thing (yet) as heatless light. Every bit of that heat is "waste energy".

That's "bulb inefficiency".

HIDs are, to date, the most efficient light sources. When they get to where they have 400 watt LEDs (effective, not true), that will change. LEDs are more efficient, but right now, each one is far weaker, and due to that, you have fall-off issues with intensity--that's your explanation for the complaints of "no penetration" with LEDs.


Equipment inefficiencies are a matter of what energy is "wasted" while the equipment is made to do its work. A 110 watt air pump with 90% efficiency actually gets work done at a rate of 100 joules per second consumption. But another 10 joules per second are wasted, usually creating heat, sometimes creating light that isn't going to be used, or isn't the purpose of the piece of hardware in question.


The equipment still USES that "waste energy"...but not to fulfill its purpose. It turns it into heat, or light, or motion you don't want.


Any light, heat, or powered movement that is not the purpose of the item in question is "inefficiency". And has to be calculated, because it will consume it, without producing the results you intend, or ANY "useful" results (unless you're fortunate enough to be in a situation where that 'waste energy", in the form it exhibits itself, can be used to solve another problem--like a cold tent using the waste heat to help stay warm, instead of using a space heater).

 

Kelvin's a rating for the "warmth" of light.

My understanding (and here, I'm shaky as hell, so look it up to confirm it) is that 3 2500 kelvin bulbs still give off a 2500 kelvin value light, it's not accumulative. Again, confirm this, I could easily be wrong, as I think in terms of wavelengths and intensities.

PM, I'll give you my skype info, though I'm not often on.

 

If your light isn't strong enough your plant will still grow but it will grow tall towards the light. The branches will grow but they will not be heavy enough to hold anything dense. Work with what you have but your best investment will def be a good light. I'm a newbie also so I look forward to following your thread

 

I checked a couple things online for you and it seems that your grow room will be fine. The area looks clean so that should prevent mold. Just be careful after you water the plants not to expose the area to extra water that could be laying around. During this veg stage as long as the area is clean, mold will not be a problem. I hope that your landlord can see the benefit. Part of growing is trial and error. If mold occurs during harvest or even veg state, it is curable and will not affect the home.
 
Good luck with your ventures! I'll still be watching. The plants looks good and it would be a shame to end your project.

 

Wrong kind of mold to be harmful. You don't get black mold, or the type of dry mold, that will infect a house, in relation to the plants. If your box is set up moisture resistant, it won't develop those molds, either.


Ever heard about a house used for growing marijuana requiring a HAZAT team come in to make it liveable? Or even a mold removal business? This isn't meth-making, or even heroin processing. It's growing plants. If a houseplant isn't going to cause the same issues.....really, it's not a concern, usually.

 

They're looking pretty happy <grin>